|
Personal web applications served by yourself |
|
|
|
|
Tuesday, 30 September 2008 |
"Richard Stallman, one of the fathers of the software freedom movement, has declared that cloud computing is stupid in calling for users to reject web applications."
I agree! I like some of it and it is cool, but do you really want several companies controlling your data, watching your movements, and how do many accounts benefit anyone?
My thought is users are becoming smarter, have cheap powerful home systems with 24/7 connections, and want to be mobile where their data can be accessed from anywhere.
This made me think considering I am tired of managing several accounts. After reading a story about a guy getting his account locked so he couldn't gain access to his personal data I really started to think, how about managing my own data on my own server that uses web applications that are similar to the crap offered by third parties online. Orb also helped me in this vision, considering it was giving me access to my home computer where I could watch streaming video off my home machine on my iPhone. It made me think, why not stream from a web server of my own to the Safari web browser? My idea was born...
While a lot of developers try to solve this problem with mostly manual backups or web apps that consolidate many accounts and services I am thinking about developing a self contained web server application with web application support, like the widgets we use trough Yahoo widgets or OS X desktop widgets, but served from your home pc to you and your family.
Basically you install a application, you need to know nothing about server technology, because it is a standalone self contained and pre-configured SSL web server with PHP support. During setup it forwards through your router, if need be, and monitors you external IP address, the one you use to contact your web applications. The program notifies you if your DHCP address changes. Again, you need to know nothing...
This server application contains a web server with SSL, an administration panel, and access to a small part of the hard drive for application storage, and a user page, which is basically a menu of your web applications. To install a web application you simply develop a standard web application using the standard tools, ajax, css, html/php or find one developed by someone else that you need. For instance, say I developed a web based word processor and photo editor. You download them and install them via admin panel.
In the user panel you will now have access to these applications and can save what you do in them to the drive space you set aside for you web apps. When you are home you have access to this portion of the drive as nothing more than a folder, like C:/MyStorage and these web applications can be used on your home system as well.
As far as the development goes there would be some standards and a small javascript in place so the web applications will work on many browsers including those found on iPhone, Android, Opera mobile browsers, etc...
The advantage?
You control all of your data on the go and at home. No fear of losing access.
No tracking or commercials.
One account to log into so security is better.
The ability to save and manage data remotely on your hard drive.
Open and tried and true web development means many useful programs and many developers.
Programs are accessible from anywhere there's a web browser including mobile devices. |
Articles 
